Disposable applicator



May 31, 1955 E w LYNN DISPOSABLE APPLICATOR Filed July 23,. 1.953

. INVENTOR. ZDWMW LYNN By ai/u hw Y QJJA/ww-v AJYORMFYB United States Patent DISPOSABLE APPLICATOR Edwin W. Lynn, Irvington, N. J., assignor to Celluplastic Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey Application July 23, 1953, Serial No. 369,911

3 Claims. (Cl. 128-261) This invention relates to an applicator for use in applying medicinal ointments or jellies to the body, and particularly to an applicator for use in applying ointments to the anal canal or vagina.

In carrying out my invention I provide a cylindrical tube for the ointment and a cooperating plunger which is of somewhat smaller diameter than the tube so that it slides freely therein. A plug seated in a recess at one end of the plunger bears against the tube walls and provides a plunger head for pushing ointment from the tube. A stop in the tube prevents the plug and plunger from projecting out beyond the end of the tube.

The great advantage of my applicator is its simple construction which makes it so economical to produce that it can be thrown away after a single use. This eliminates the problem of cleaning and insures the use of a clean, sanitary item. Positioning of the plug in a recess at one end of the plunger is of particular advantage, because the force required for displacing the ointment also assists in holding the plug in operable position on the plunger during use and as a result I achieve positive displacement of the contents of the tube.

These and other advantages can be readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a sectional view of an applicator embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional view showing the structure of the plunger head; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary, sectional view of the applicator tube during the filling operation.

The applicator shown in the drawings includes a hollow cylindrical tube for the medication and a second coopcrating hollow tube or plunger 12 which is of somewhat smaller diameter than tube 10 so that it slides freely therein. One end of hollow plunger 12 is sealed off with a plug 14. The body portion 16 of plug 14 fits snugly into the end of plunger 12 and its head portion 18 is seated against the rim of hollow plunger 12. Preferably head 18 is made large enough to fit snugly against the side walls of tube 10 where it provides a bearing surface for plunger 12 and a plunger head for pushing ointment from the tube. It is to be noted that the force used in extruding ointment from tube 10 also reacts to push head 18 of plug 14 against its seat on the rim of plunger 12. This assists in holding plug 14 in operable position on plunger 12 giving positive displacement of the contents of the tube. If desired, the open end of plunger 12 may be spread outwardly as at 20 to provide a thumb rest.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, one end of tube 10 is folded over inwardly upon itself to form a rounded end portion 22 and a shoulder or stop 24 on the inside of tube 10 which prevents plug 14 and plunger 12 from projecting outwardly beyond the rounded end of tube 10. The other end of tube 10 may be spread outwardly to give a flared end portion 26 to serve as a guide and provide a seat for the ointment tube (see Figure 3). If it is important to extrude a measured amount of ointment from ice tube 10, the exterior of the tube may be marked with graduations for such purpose.

In use, tube 10 is filled with ointment or jelly, as shown in Figure 3. After this is done, plunger 12 is inserted and forced down against the ointment which is thereby extruded from tube 10 at 22.

As to materials, my applicator is preferably made of a transparent material which does not readily shatter, and for economical reasons I prefer to use plastic materials which lend themselves to extrusion molding, as for example, acetates, butyrates and similar plastic materials.

For best results I prefer to use a material for plug 14 which can be slightly compressed by tube 10 and plunger 12 and to make head 18 and body 16 of plug 14 of slightly larger diameter than the inside diameter of tube 10 and plunger 12 respectively. When this is done the plug is forced to fit securely against the walls of these members and head 18 then gives a wiping action against the walls of tube 10, providing extremely efficient extrusion of the ointment. For example, if the tube and plunger are made of acetate I make plug 14 of polyethylene or an acetate which is a softer material than the material of the tube and compressible by it.

It will be understood that it is intended to cover all changes and modifications of the preferred embodiment of my invention which do not constitute departures from the scope and spirit thereof.

What I claim is:

1. An applicator for applying ointment or jelly to the body which comprises the combination of a hollow cylindrical tube for holding medication and a cooperating plunger comprising a second hollow cylindrical tube of slightly smaller diameter than the first mentioned medication tube so that it will slide freely therein, said plunger having a plug in one end, said plug having a head portion which is seated against the rim of the hollow plunger and said medication tube having its rim at one end folded over inwardly upon itself to form ashoulder on the inside of the tube to provide a stop and limit movement of the plug and plunger in the tube and said medication tube having its rim at the other end of the tube opposite the shoulder spread outwardly to enlarge the diameter of the medication tube body and form an entrance into the tube.

2. An applicator for applying ointment or jelly to the body which comprises the combination of a hollow cylindrical tube for holding medication and a cooperating plunger comprising a second hollow cylindrical tube of slightly smaller diameter than the first mentioned medication tube so that it will slide freely therein, said plunger having a plug in one end, said plug having a head portion which is seated against the rim of the hollow plunger and said medication tube having its rim at one end folded over inwardly upon itself to form a shoulder on the inside of the tube to provide a stop and limit movement of the plug and plunger in the tube and said hollow cylindrical plunger tube having its rim at the other end of the plunger opposite the plug spread outwardly to enlarge the diameter of the plunger body and form a thumb rest for the user.

3. An applicator for applying ointment or jelly to the body which comprises the combination of a hollow cylindrical tube for holding medication and a cooperating plunger comprising a second hollow cylindrical tube of slightly smaller diameter than the first mentioned medication tube so that it will slide freely therein, said plunger having a plug in one end, said plug having a head portion which is seated against the rim of the hollow plunger and said medication tube having its rim at one end folded over inwardly upon itself to form a shoulder on the inside of the tube to provide a stop and limit movement of the plug and plunger in the tube and said plug being of 4 slightly larger diameter than the inside diameter of said References Cited in the file of this patent tube and of a softer material than the tube, so that the UNITED STATES PATENTS i g i f; the P i 914,871 Ong Mar. 9, 1909 snugy 8 =g 9? 5 1,604,915 Houser Oct. 26, 1926 the tube Walls durmg extruslon of the omtment. 2,077,176 Leaner Apr. 13, 1937 2,224,018 Holtman Dec. 3, 1940 

